


Signs You're Being Catfished

by Iknowyouknowleeknow



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Catfish AU, Kinda, M/M, Online Dating, chan and seungmin are just trying to be good friends, so I wrote more, two people asked for a second part, unoriginal but my brain didn't want to work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-20
Updated: 2019-05-21
Packaged: 2020-03-07 02:59:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18864349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iknowyouknowleeknow/pseuds/Iknowyouknowleeknow
Summary: Jisung pushed the door to the apartment open, startling his two roommates.“Tell me what?”Chan glanced at Seungmin, who shrugged, “Just tell him, dude.”“Sungie,” Chan reached out and laid a hand on his shoulder, gently guiding him away from the entrance and towards the couch. “You know we care about you right? And we only want what’s best for you? I know you aren’t going to want to hear this, but we don’t want you to get hurt.”Jisung folded his arms across his chest and glared, defenses up, “You think Minho’s a catfish.”





	1. Chapter 1

“How do you think we should tell him?”

“Just say it.”

“I don’t want to hurt him, he’s super attached to this guy and us being jerks about it isn’t going to help.”

“I didn’t say be a jerk, I said just say it. There’s no use beating around the bush.”

Jisung pushed the door to the apartment open, startling his two roommates.

“Tell me what?”

Chan glanced at Seungmin, who shrugged, “Just tell him, dude.”

“Sungie,” Chan reached out and laid a hand on his shoulder, gently guiding him away from the entrance and towards the couch. “You know we care about you right? And we only want what’s best for you? I know you aren’t going to want to hear this, but we don’t want you to get hurt.”

Jisung folded his arms across his chest and glared, defenses up, “You think Minho’s a catfish.”

Chan looked startled at Jisung’s perception, but Seungmin nodded and flopped down onto the couch, “He’s most definitely a catfish.”

“He’s not,” Jisung glanced back and forth between Seungmin, who already seemed over the conversation, and Chan, who was gnawing on his lower lip and looking worried. “I know he’s not.”

Seungmin began ticking off reasons on his fingers, “He refuses to video chat with you. Every picture he sends you is also posted on his instagram. He won’t meet up even though you live in the same city. Catfish.”

“It doesn’t seem great, Sung,” Chan sighed deeply. “I’m sorry.”

“He’s n-not,” Jisung insisted again, voice breaking and causing a mask of pity to wash over Chan’s face. Jisung tilted his head, trying to blink back the stupid tears that threatened to spill at the thought of Minho lying to him. “He’s not a catfish. He loves me and he’s real.”

  
“Oh, Sungie,” Chan reached out, gathering him into a hug that Jisung didn’t have the strength to resist. He let the older boy rock him back and forth, whispering reassurances into Jisung’s messy hair. “We’ll help you find someone real, someone who’ll love you to the moon and back.”

“Minho is real,” Jisung’s voice was a little stronger, but the choke of tears was still there. “He is. I know he is.”

“I wish he was, Sungie, I really wish he was. I know how happy he makes you. But the longer this goes on, the more hurt you’ll be when you find out he was lying.”

Jisung pulled back, wiping harshly at his cheeks, “There is no when. He’s not lying.”

“He’s lying about something,” Seungmin had picked up the remote and was lazily flipping through the channels on the tv, stopping when he got to MTV. “Should we call these guys?”

“Minho is not a catfish and he is not lying to me and he loves me,” Jisung insisted, smacking Chan’s hands away when he reached out for him again. “Screw you guys.”

“Sung, we just…”

The loud slam of Jisung’s bedroom door ended the conversation.

-

“My friends think you’re a catfish,” Jisung was curled up in bed, his phone on the pillow beside his head and his favorite stuffed animal nestled in his arms.

“That’s ridiculous,” the soft voice coming out of the phone was rich with laughter. “I’m not a catfish.”

“I told them you weren’t,” Jisung rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling. “I know they just mean well and don’t want me to get hurt, but they don’t know you like I do. I know you wouldn’t lie to me.”

“Course I wouldn’t, Sungie. I’m real and I love you.”

“I love you too,” Jisung yawned and he heard a chuckle on the other end of the line.

“Get some rest, sleepyhead. I’ll talk to you in the morning.”

“M’kay,” Jisung yawned again and fished around for his phone, switching it off speaker and pressing it to his ear. “Love you loads.”

“Love you more,” Minho answered. “Sleep tight.”

Jisung made a small noise of agreement and ended the call. He pulled up his photos and went to the album labeled with a heart, swiping through all the photos he had of Minho.

The beautiful boy staring back at him brought a flutter to his chest and Jisung smiled softly, still a bit in shock that someone like Minho wanted to be with someone like him. The first time he’d shown his friends a picture of the boy he’d been talking to, Seungmin let out a low whistle and promptly informed Jisung that Minho was way out of his league.

Jisung set his phone aside and closed his eyes, hoping to fall quickly to sleep so he wouldn’t have to dwell on the events of the day. Unfortunately, his brain had other plans.

‘Seungmin has a point,’ the voice in the back of his head whispered. ‘Minho’s never sent a photo that wasn’t already posted online.’

Jisung flipped over and pressed his face into the worn fur of his teddy bear, trying to silence the deafening thoughts. So what if Minho only sent him the pictures he posted on Instagram? His boyfriend obviously posted those photos for a reason, because he liked the way he looked in them. Of course he would want to send Jisung the same ones. They were the best ones.

‘He gets weirdly vague anytime you mention possibly meeting up, just offers some excuse about being too busy,’ the voice continued as Jisung burrowed deeper into the covers, suddenly freezing. ‘And whenever you say anything about video chatting, he tells you he has to go and he’ll talk later.’

Jisung rolled to stare up at his ceiling, teddy clutched tightly in his trembling hands, “Minho is real. He’s not lying. He loves me.”

In the cold press of darkness the words sounded fake, even to his own ears.

-

“Good morning, Sung,” Chan’s voice was cautious and there was a hint of worry to his smile. “Did you sleep well?”

Jisung ignored him as he headed to the fridge and grabbed the milk. He snatched a box of cereal from the cabinet and dumped some in to a bowl, making sure to avoid Chan’s gaze the whole time. He’d been up for most of the night thinking about what they’d said and he wasn’t ready for another confrontation. He was hurting too much.

He added the milk and began shoving the cereal in his mouth as fast as he could, not even bothering to sit down at the table. He just wanted to be out of here.

“He only has 50 followers, is never in pictures with anyone else and is never tagged in any photos. The followers he does have only comment on how good looking he is. It’s obvious he doesn’t know them…” Seungmin stepped into the kitchen, laptop in hand, and froze when he saw Jisung. “Shit, I didn’t know you were awake.”

Jisung stared down into his bowl, barely registering the tears that were streaming down his cheeks and plopping onto the counter. The silence was thick as he brought up the sleeve of his hoodie to swipe at his face, “Say it. Whatever you have to say, just say it. I’m not good enough for someone like Minho to love me, of course it has to be fake. Who would ever want me?” he laughed bitterly. “No one kind and beautiful and sweet, that’s for sure. You’re right. It all has to be some sort of prank. I don’t deserve to be loved.”

“That’s not what anyone’s saying, Sung,” Chan was out of his seat and cradling Jisung in his arms before Jisung even registered him moving. “You deserve all the love in the world. You’re incredible and talented and gorgeous and anyone would be lucky to be with you. We’re not doubting Minho’s love for you. We just don’t think he’s the boy in the pictures. And you deserve to be loved by someone who isn’t lying to you.”

Already broken from spending the night with his haunting thoughts, Jisung collapsed into Chan’s hold and sobbed.

-

“Y-you’re breaking up with me?” Minho’s voice cracked over the phone and Jisung hated that the pain in it shot straight to his heart. “Sungie, please.”

“I’m not breaking up with you yet,” Jisung clutched the phone tightly, keeping it pressed to his ear. Chan was sitting next to him, a strong pillar of support. Seungmin paced the floor in front of the couch, shooting glances at them every few seconds. “I’m asking you to meet. If you can’t do that, then yes, I’m breaking up with you.” His voice wavered and Chan reached out to rub comforting circles on the skin of his thigh, “I deserve to meet you. I deserve to know the truth.”

“I love you, Sungie. That’s the truth.”

“Please,” Jisung screwed his eyes shut, but a lone tear escaped and weaved its way slowly down his cheek. “Please don’t say that.”

“I mean it,” there was a renewed fierceness to Minho’s voice. “I’ve never meant anything more. I love you so much. But…” he trailed off, silence cackling over the phone. Then, so soft Jisung barely caught it, “But you won’t love me anymore. Not once you see me.”

-

Jisung was nervously tapping his foot, eyes shooting around the coffee shop where he had agreed to meet Minho. He’d shown up a little early and was now on the verge of a heart attack with every new person that walked through the door. Since Minho had basically confirmed the pictures weren’t him, Jisung now had no idea who he was looking for. It was very unnerving.

A minute before the time they’d agreed to meet, the door opened and a boy walked in. He had his head down, face buried in the chunky scarf that circled his neck. He lifted his gaze very slightly, eyes finding Jisung’s.

Jisung froze, his coffee halfway to his mouth.

Jisung knew those eyes. He’d been staring at them in pictures for months.

Minho crossed to the table and Jisung blinked, confusion muddling his brain. He didn’t understand, “What’s going on?”

Jisung heard Minho take a deep breath as he slid into the seat across from Jisung, his hands lifting to take off his scarf. He was shaking, Jisung noted. His fingers trembled as he slowly unwound the scarf from around his face.

Oh.

Jisung reached across the table, his body ahead of his brain, and traced a soft finger down the long scar that cut the right side of Minho’s face in half. The other boy was frozen beneath his touch, not even breathing, as Jisung’s finger finished its journey. He kept his hand on Minho’s face, his own fingers trembling now as he stared into the eyes of the boy he loved.

“You thought I wouldn’t like you because of this?” Jisung’s thumb ran over the ridge of the scar and Minho’s gaze dropped from his, sheepish and relieved and a little fearful. “You’re still beautiful. You’re still the same.”

Minho’s hand lifted to cover Jisung’s and he offered him a smile, bright but a bit unsure. Jisung could see the tears gathering in his eyes and a second later, after Jisung absentmindedly swiped at his scar again, they began to fall.

“I’m sorry,” Jisung made to withdraw his hand but Minho’s stopped him, keeping Jisung’s small palm pressed to his face. “I should have asked before touching you.”

“It’s okay,” Minho spoke for the first time, voice soft and wavering. “I don’t mind you touching.”

“There’s nothing wrong with the way you look,” Jisung made sure his gaze didn’t leave Minho’s, so the other boy could see the truth in his eyes. “You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. And even if you weren’t, I’d still love you. I love _you._  Not your face.”

Minho’s tears were flowing a bit faster now and he reached up with his free hand to wipe them away, “It was hard. After the accident. People kept looking at me with pity and even if they didn’t mean for me to, I still heard them. Saying it was such a shame, that I had been so beautiful.” His shoulders curved in and Jisung hated them, hated every single person who had made Minho feel like he was less. “I wanted to feel pretty again. So I made a new profile. A profile with pictures from before. Before I was broken.”

“You’re not broken,” Jisung was crying now too, his tears silent rivers down his cheeks. “You’re perfect.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too,” Jisung leaned in and Minho met him halfway, lips catching in a kiss that was salty from their combined tears. The edge of the table dug into Jisung’s ribs and his hand was beginning to grow sweaty where it was held to Minho’s cheek and the clatter of the coffee shop was bit distracting, but none of that mattered.

Minho was here and he was real and he loved Jisung.

That’s all that mattered.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two people asked for another part to this and there was enough baggage in the first part for me to work with and write a second, so here we go

“Chan and Seungmin want to meet you.”

“What?” Minho lifted his head from where it had been resting in the crook of Jisung’s neck and stared at his boyfriend. “Meet me? Why?”

Jisung blinked, surprised by the question. He reached for the remote and paused the show they were watching on Netflix, “Um, because they’re my best friends and you’re my boyfriend? I don’t understand why that needs an explanation.”

“What did you tell them? After you met me?”

Jisung furrowed his brow, “I told them that I was right, you weren’t a catfish. You were the boy in the pictures.”

“But I’m not.”

This whole conversation had taken a confusing turn for Jisung. Minho pulled away from him and put some space between them on the couch, wringing his hands in his lap.

Jisung stared, mouth agape, “Yes, you are.”

Minho gestured towards the mark on his face, “I’m not.”

Oh. The scar.

It was so irrelevant to Jisung that he forgot about until Minho would bring it up, and then he would remind his boyfriend that he was whole and valid and beautiful.

On their first date after their meeting at the coffee shop, they had gone to the Han River. Minho had spent most of the day bundled in his scarf, only removing it after Jisung had asked with a aegyo laced voice to see his boyfriend’s pretty face.

Things were going smoothly until Jisung said something funny and Minho laughed loudly, eyes crinkled and smile so bright it brought a smile to Jisung’s face just looking at it.

He’d pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of Minho, carefree, bright and beyond beautiful.

Minho had sobered up the second he saw the phone and rewrapped his scarf around his face, quietly asking Jisung to delete the photo.

“Why?” Jisung had asked. “You look lovely.”

He’d held the phone out to show Minho, to show him how pretty he was, but the other boy had turned his head away so fast Jisung was worried for his neck.

“Delete it. Please.”

Jisung had done as he asked, not wanting to ruin the nice day they had been having, but it bothered him for the whole rest of the night. He made sure to shower Minho with extra compliments for the next week, but he knew nothing he said would ever be able to fix the way Minho saw himself.

“I’m not the boy from the photos,” Minho said again.

“What color is my hair?”

The sudden change in conversation had Minho’s eyebrows dipping together in confusion, but he answered anyway, “Blonde.”

Jisung nodded. He had just dyed it two days before, “And when we were talking online? What color was my hair then?”

“Orange.”

“If I had been blonde the first time we met, after having orange hair the whole time we talked, would you still say I was the boy in the photos I sent you?”

Minho blinked, “Yeah. Obviously. Your hair color doesn’t change who you are.”

“And neither does your scar,” Jisung said fiercely. “I can’t make you see yourself any differently, but you don’t get to decide how I see you. And to me you are the boy in the photos.”

Minho didn’t seem to be able to find a response to that and he dipped his head, staring at the hands he was worrying in his lap.

Jisung reached over and detangled them, slotting his own fingers with Minho’s and closing the space between them. He dropped his head on Minho’s shoulder and unpaused the show, settling back in like nothing had happened.

Minho was stiff, but relaxed underneath him after a few minutes. He pressed a soft kiss to the crown of Jisung’s head before resting his cheek there.

Jisung made a sound of contentment and snuggled closer, turning his own head a bit to shower a few soft kisses across Minho’s neck.

“Thank you,” Minho said softly, an episode later. “I’m sorry I can’t just forget about it the way you can.”

“You don’t have to apologize for anything. To me it’s just as much a part of you as your eyes or nose or lips. It’s just you. But you lived a whole life before it. Of course it’s affected your view of yourself.”

“I’ll meet Chan and Seungmin,” Minho squeezed Jisung’s hand tightly. “I’d love to meet your friends.”

-

Jisung was buzzing with excitement, nearly shooting out of his seat every time the door to the coffee shop opened.

Chan rolled his eyes fondly and placed a hand on Jisung’s arm, “Relax, Sung.”

“I’m just really excited. I hope you guys all get along.”

“I’m sure we’ll get along fine,” Chan smiled at him. “Don’t stress.”

Jisung wasn’t _that_ worried, but he was a little unsure because he hadn’t told his friends about Minho’s scar. He didn’t think it was that big of a deal and trusted that his friends wouldn’t do anything stupid like point it out, but now, seconds away from his two worlds colliding, he thought maybe he should have mentioned it. He was just opening his mouth to say something when the bell went off and Minho walked into the shop.

Jisung blinked. He wasn’t wearing his scarf. He always wore his scarf when he was in public.

Minho’s eyes landed on them and he smiled, nerves clear as he made his way towards them.

Jisung stood up to greet him, pressing a chaste kiss to his lips in lieu of a hello. He wanted to ask about the scarf, but he didn’t want to do it in front of his friends.

Instead he turned, arm slipping around Minho’s waist, and presented him to Chan and Seungmin, “This is Minho.”

“Nice to finally meet you,” Chan beamed at him, reaching out a hand for Minho to shake. “I’m Chan.”

Seungmin took a long sip of his iced americano, then glanced up at Minho, “Seungmin. I still can’t believe you’re actually real and actually dating Jisung. You’re so far out of his league, it’s ridiculous.”

“Shut up,” Jisung balled up his napkin and threw it at his friend before he collapsed back into the booth. He tugged Minho down with him, tangling their hands together as he offered Minho the coffee he’d ordered for him when they’d arrived.

There was a pleased flush to Minho’s face and he smiled down at the table, fingers tightening with Jisung’s.

“So why wouldn’t you meet him for so long?” Seungmin inquired. “He never told us.”

Minho looked up in surprise, “He didn’t say?”

Seungmin shook his head, “I mean, he’s super loud and annoying, I wouldn’t want to meet him either, but I doubt that’s how you feel.”

“Oh, it, um,” Minho played with the straw of his coffee with his free hand, “it was a self-conscious thing.”

“Fair enough,” Seungmin shrugged. “I’m glad you finally agreed to do it. He really likes you.”

“I really like him too,” Minho snuck a peek at Jisung, grinning when their eyes locked. “But he already knows that.”

“It’s best to remind him often,” Seungmin suggested. “He’s got issues with thinking he’s not worthy of love.”

Jisung’s face flushed deeply and he hoped his voice wasn’t shaking too much as he glared at Seungmin, “Stop it.”

“Not your place,” Chan said softly, placing a hand on Seungmin’s arm.

Jisung could feel Minho’s curious gaze on his face and he kept his head down, suddenly very interested in the granules of sugar he had accidentally spilled on the table earlier.

“Sorry,” Seungmin sounded genuinely apologetic and Jisung gave a small nod of his head in recognition, but he continued pushing the sugar around with his fingertip and avoiding everyone’s gazes.

“So, Minho,” Chan’s voice was extra chipper in the quiet that had settled over them, “what do you do?”

-

“Sungie?”

It was a few hours later and Jisung had hoped that the fun they’d had at karaoke would have erased Seungmin’s words from Minho’s mind, but the cautious tone he was using implied that it had not.

Jisung wondered if he could fake sleep, even though he’d only flopped down onto Minho’s bed two minutes before and was currently scrolling through his phone.

His thumb paused for a second before he hummed in acknowledgment of Minho and kept on scrolling.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Jisung’s heart swelled, so grateful that Minho was giving him a choice, “Honestly, no.”

“That’s fine,” Minho climbed into the bed behind him and wrapped an arm around his waist, hooking his chin over Jisung’s shoulder so he could see what he was doing on his phone.

Jisung pressed back into his touch and adjusted his phone a little so Minho could see his Instagram feed as well.

They laid in silence for a few minutes, until Jisung’s scrolling led them to a post Chan had uploaded earlier that day.

Jisung froze. It was a picture of him and Minho at karaoke, staring at each other as they belted out whatever stupid song they had been singing.

Minho’s right side was facing the camera.

Jisung’s fingers trembled as he closed out of Instagram and pulled up Chan’s number, voice high with panic, “I didn’t know he was taking pictures, I swear. I’ll ask him to delete it right now. I’m so sorry.”

Minho’s hand closed over Jisung’s, stopping him from placing the call. “It’s okay,” there was a bit of a tremor to Minho’s voice, but his hand was steady against Jisung’s as he gently took the phone from his grasp and set it on the bedside table. “Really, it’s okay. I saw it earlier. He tagged me in it.”

Jisung flipped over so he could look at Minho, eyes searching his boyfriend’s face for any signs that he was uncomfortable.

Minho huffed out a little laugh at Jisung’s concerned expression, lifting his hand to poke at the furrow between Jisung’s brows, “I’m fine with it, I promise. I like the way I look next to you.”

Jisung made a face, pretending to gag as Minho giggled, “That was so cheesy!”

“Maybe, but it’s also true.” Minho gave Jisung a quick kiss before snuggling his face into Jisung’s chest, “The scar is usually the first thing I look at when I see a photo of myself. But with you there, it wasn’t. I saw you first. And then I saw how happy we both looked and I don’t know,” his fingers tangled in the hem of Jisung’s shirt as his voice grew quiet, “the scar didn’t matter so much anymore.”

“I’m really proud of you,” Jisung smoothed his hand over Minho’s hair, a little choked up. Between the photo and venturing out in public without the protection of his scarf, Minho had made huge progress that day. “I love you so much.”

Minho lifted his head to look at Jisung, concern in his expression now, “I love you too. Loads and loads. I hope you know that. I’m so sorry for being such a shitty boyfriend and making you feel like I don’t.”

“What?” Jisung sat up in shock, dislodging their cuddling position. “You’ve never...why would you think....shitty boyfriend...what?”

Minho sat up slowly, pulling his knees to his chest and setting his chin there, “I’ve been so caught up in my own issues that I never even noticed you had any. I should have. It’s not fair to you to be constantly talking me out of my own head and not receiving the same support from me. I’m really sorry.”

“The reason you didn’t notice I had any issues was because since I’ve been with you, I haven’t,” Jisung reached out to run his thumb down Minho’s jawline, prompting his boyfriend to lift his head and look at him. “You’ve made me feel so loved and accepted since the minute we started talking. Seungmin just brought that up because I was upset when they kept saying you were a catfish. I know they didn’t mean it that way, but my stupid brain told me they thought you were fake because they didn’t think anyone could love me. It had nothing to do with you or our relationship. Just some stuff in the past that I don’t want to think about anymore.”

Minho’s eyes searched his, and there was a grave seriousness to his tone as he reached up and gripped Jisung’s hand, “If I ever do anything to make you feel unworthy, please tell me. I want to know so I can correct it. I don’t want you to ever have to feel like you aren’t loved. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me and I want that to be clear to you every day.”

“It is,” Jisung smiled at him, eyes a bit watery as he squeezed his hand back. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me too.”

Minho reached across with his free hand and grabbed Jisung’s discarded phone, thumbing open the camera app. He pressed his lips to Jisung’s cheek, his scarred side in full view of the camera, and snapped a photo.

“You can post it, or save it, or use it as your background, or whatever,” Minho slipped the phone into Jisung’s hand. “I don’t mind anyone seeing.”

Jisung offered him a quivering smile, still a bit overwhelmed by the emotions of the night, “I hope you know that I’m never going to stop taking pictures of you now. You’ve unleashed a photo demon.”

“That’s fine,” Minho slotted his lips against Jisung’s, kissing him softly. “I want to see myself through your eyes. You make me feel whole again.”

“You’re not broken.”

“Not anymore. Because you complete me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always thanks for reading and thank you so much for all the love

**Author's Note:**

> as always, anyone who read this, I love you with all my heart  
> thank you again and again for your kind words and kudos  
> they mean so much to me


End file.
